Changing Perspectives Through Photography

About This Tool

The concept is based on positive psychology research that shows if you notice and appreciate beauty, you’re more likely to find joy and meaning in everyday life. Every day for 30 days, you will get daily email prompts telling you what beauty to photograph and share on Instagram using the hashtag #IChooseBeauty. It’s 30 days of guided beauty treasure hunts to help you find happiness wherever you are.

1. "Choosing to see beauty has helped me in so many ways. I struggle with anxiety/panic attacks and have since childhood. When I am going through a rough time, my anxiety likes to make me feel and see the world as though there is no good and only fear. By purposefully choosing to see the beauty around me every day, my anxiety takes a back seat. Focusing on the positives and happiness in my life each morning when I wake up helps to stop my anxious thoughts from controlling my mind and life. I am so thankful for the encouragement to keep choosing beauty and to know that I am not alone!"

2. "Choosing to see beauty seems like this super easy thing, there's beauty literally everywhere! But on bad days it's so much harder to see because you're so caught up in your head, and the things that make you laugh or smile or even feel good normally don't seem enough anymore. You have to actively make your brain find/see the good, even when you feel like there's nothing. But finding the beauty every day helps me to realize that even on the worst days there IS beauty to find. Plus it makes you appreciate the beauty on the good days a little bit more!"

3. "Choosing to see beauty changed the world I live in. As a person with depression, anxiety, and PTSD, the world was a hostile place. It wasn't until taking control of my perception and choosing to see beauty and good that my world became a bearable place to be. With deliberate practice, I can see the beauty in any situation. Beauty is always there if you choose to see it. My world became a safe place, a beautiful place, and a magical place.”

About the Creator

#ICHOOSEBEAUTY is a social media movement on Instagram that empowers people to notice the beauty around them every day. The project was born in 2013 out of my journey from depression to happiness, after my therapist suggested I look for beauty to help get through a dark time in my life.

My images are proof that happiness is right in front of us, all around us. We just have to choose to see it.

The amazing thing that has come out of this project, besides my healing, is that it has inspired and helped so many other people who are struggling with something in their lives. Through a free 30-day challenge, I offer daily prompts on how to find different kinds of simple beauty - whether it’s puffy clouds, an old book, or a good hot cup of tea. Dozens have joined the movement, posting their own #ICHOOSEBEAUTY images and sharing how this process helps them feel better, too.

#ICHOOSEBEAUTY helps me to manage my depression every day as I notice all kinds of beauty that I'd overlooked before. And the unexpected bonus? Strangers coming together and joining me in what has turned into an inspiring community and movement.

Pricing Information

Privacy Information

This Privacy Policy describes how your personal information is collected, used, and shared when you visit or make a purchase from https://ichoosebeauty.org/ (the “Site”).

PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

When you visit the Site, we automatically collect certain information about your device, including information about your web browser, IP address, time zone, and some of the cookies that are installed on your device. Additionally, as you browse the Site, we collect information about the individual web pages or products that you view, what websites or search terms referred you to the Site, and information about how you interact with the Site. We refer to this automatically-collected information as “Device Information.”

We collect Device Information using the following technologies:

– “Cookies” are data files that are placed on your device or computer and often include an anonymous unique identifier. For more information about cookies, and how to disable cookies, visit http://www.allaboutcookies.org.
– “Log files” track actions occurring on the Site, and collect data including your IP address, browser type, Internet service provider, referring/exit pages, and date/time stamps.
– “Web beacons,” “tags,” and “pixels” are electronic files used to record information about how you browse the Site.

Additionally, when you make a purchase or attempt to make a purchase through the Site, we collect certain information from you, including your name, billing address, shipping address, payment information (including credit card numbers), email address, and phone number. We refer to this information as “Order Information.”

When we talk about “Personal Information” in this Privacy Policy, we are talking both about Device Information and Order Information.

HOW DO WE USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION?

We use the Order Information that we collect generally to fulfill any orders placed through the Site (including processing your payment information, arranging for shipping, and providing you with invoices and/or order confirmations). Additionally, we use this Order Information to:
Communicate with you;
Screen our orders for potential risk or fraud; and
When in line with the preferences you have shared with us, provide you with information or advertising relating to our products or services.

We use the Device Information that we collect to help us screen for potential risk and fraud (in particular, your IP address), and more generally to improve and optimize our Site (for example, by generating analytics about how our customers browse and interact with the Site, and to assess the success of our marketing and advertising campaigns). We may also use the Device Information for advertising and retargeting advertising.

SHARING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

We share your Personal Information with third parties to help us use your Personal Information, as described above. For example, we use WooCommerce to power our online store–you can read more about how WooCommerce uses your Personal Information here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. We also use Google Analytics to help us understand how our customers use the Site–you can read more about how Google uses your Personal Information here: https://www.google.com/intl/en/policies/privacy/. You can also opt-out of Google Analytics here: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.

Finally, we may also share your Personal Information to comply with applicable laws and regulations, to respond to a subpoena, search warrant or other lawful request for information we receive, or to otherwise protect our rights.

As described above, we use your Personal Information to provide you with targeted advertisements or marketing communications we believe may be of interest to you. For more information about how targeted advertising works, you can visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s (“NAI”) educational page at http://www.networkadvertising.org/understanding-online-advertising/how-does-it-work.

You can opt out of targeted advertising by visiting these links:
FACEBOOK – https://www.facebook.com/settings/?tab=ads
GOOGLE – https://www.google.com/settings/ads/anonymous
BING – https://advertise.bingads.microsoft.com/en-us/resources/policies/personalized-ads

Additionally, you can opt out of some of these services by visiting the Digital Advertising Alliance’s opt-out portal at: http://optout.aboutads.info/.

DO NOT TRACK
Please note that we do not alter our Site’s data collection and use practices when we see a Do Not Track signal from your browser.

If you are a European resident, you have the right to access personal information we hold about you and to ask that your personal information be corrected, updated, or deleted. If you would like to exercise this right, please contact us through the contact information below.

Additionally, if you are a European resident we note that we are processing your information in order to fulfill contracts we might have with you (for example if you make an order through the Site), or otherwise to pursue our legitimate business interests listed above. Additionally, please note that your information will be transferred outside of Europe, including to Canada and the United States.

DATA RETENTION
When you place an order through the Site, we will maintain your Order Information for our records unless and until you ask us to delete this information.

CHANGES
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time in order to reflect, for example, changes to our practices or for other operational, legal or regulatory reasons.

CONTACT US
For more information about our privacy practices, if you have questions, or if you would like to make a complaint, please contact us by e-mail at sahar@ichoosebeauty.org or by mail using the details provided below:

480 Pio Drive #108, Wailuku, HI, 96793, United States

Other Disclaimers

The #IChooseBeauty Challenge is not intended as a substitute for mental health or medical treatment.

DOING THINGS ON YOUR OWN

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About Mental Health America

Mental Health America (MHA) - founded in 1909 - is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the overall mental health of all Americans. Our work is driven by our commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including prevention services for all; early identification and intervention for those at risk; integrated care, services, and supports for those who need it; with recovery as the goal.

S2S (Screening 2 Supports) by Mental Health America is an educational program intended to help inform people about options they have in getting help for mental health issues. It may suggest tools and resources that offer information, treatment services, do-it-yourself tools, and/or ways to connect with others. It does not represent its results as an exhaustive list of all services available to a given individual for a given behavioral health problem, or as an endorsement of specific treatments or services, or as a replacement for treatment or services as performed by a qualified provider. This site is currently in beta. Please send any and all suggestions, comments, or questions to us at screening at mentalhealthamerica.net.